Five years on from appearing in Music Week’s Rising Star column, Sian Eleri is becoming one of the most important tastemakers in music.
Now firmly established as a star of BBC Radio 1, where she presents the influential Future Artists show and more, the Welsh broadcaster is also a Mercury Prize judge.
Eleri began her journey on BBC Radio Cymru, before taking over Radio 1’s Chillest Show on Sundays. She later added the Monday-Wednesday Power Down Playlist and, in 2024, took over the Future Artists show from Jack Saunders (and is shortlisted at the Music Week Awards this year). Also in 2024, she took over from Jamz Supernova as presenter and curator for Selector Radio, which specialises in new UK music.
Here, Sian Eleri joins Music Week for a discussion about why emerging talent is in rude health…
You took over Future Artists in 2024 – how did it feel to be stepping into Jack Saunders’ shoes and taking on that revered slot?
“It’s such a prestigious slot, so it’s not that I was surprised that I was offered the job, but it was one of those phone calls where you’re like, ‘Oh, now? You want me to have it now?’ It was the phone call that I would maybe have hoped for in three years’ time from that point, so I felt really lucky that the Radio 1 bosses felt like they could see something in me, where I clearly love music and I want to do anything I can to push artists and to promote them. But you get the most amazing people through the door.
“With someone like Sienna Spiro, I can remember listening to Need Me, her debut single, when she was a complete unknown with a few thousand followers on Instagram and [my producer and I] were sitting in complete silence, stunned, and staring at each other. We knew we needed to have her on the show ASAP because she was obviously next level. She’s one of those artists where you just know. Future Artists gives us the opportunity to introduce brand-new acts that will eventually be household names, and that’s a really nice feeling.”
What can you specifically bring to the show as a tastemaker?
“I remember that Music Week Rising Star interview a few years ago when I said that I wanted to champion international voices and talked about the idea that you don’t have to be able to speak English or be from the UK in order to be a really relevant artist here. I think we’re doing that [on the show]. We’re trying to reflect K-pop bands coming through, and artists that have international widespread appeal. There’s a lot of noise coming from Australia right now; I also really love [New Zealand indie band] Balu Brigada. I think everything sounds amazing from that part of the world.”
What excites you about the increasingly global way that people listen to music these days?
“I love the idea of us feeling moved by music when we don’t understand what the lyrics are saying. Don’t get me wrong, obviously lyrics are really important, but if you look back at classical music from way back when, it could move people to tears with no words at all. With Rosalía, for example, and Lux, I remember being in a little boxy meeting room at the BBC and I was in floods of tears listening to it! I didn’t even know what she was singing about but it was so amazing. Obviously, I’m a bit biased because, being someone who speaks a minority language, I’m always going to feel a certain way about expanding our horizons. But I always say with music, that you don’t need to understand it to feel it.”
I want to do anything I can to push artists and to promote them
Sian Eleri
How are you feeling about the current state of new music in 2026 generally?
“I’m feeling really optimistic! I’ve noticed more emphasis on fanbases recently. If you look at someone like Alessi Rose, for example, she’s been building an audience for the last few years just by being herself online and making catchy pop songs in the process. You’re also seeing it now with Erin LeCount. About a year-and-a-half ago, she was writing music in her back garden shed studio that she built with her dad, and now she’s the next buzzy person of the moment. It’s really interesting seeing how people are discovering artists that they think are authentic and sincere, especially at a time where the whole AI conversation is looming and changing every day. It scares me a bit because it’s happening so quickly and there aren’t necessarily frameworks in place where we can make sure that we’re supporting real people in the music industry.”
Are enough of those kinds of artists coming through? Or does the industry need to step up its efforts?
“Yeah, Jacob Alon is a really interesting example. I remember seeing them live for the first time and I was moved to tears. Jacob is really exciting in a different way. You’re seeing it with bands like Geese as well – music that feels like it really touches you or affects you. If I think about the music that, if I ever get married or, not to be morbid, but at my funeral, I would want as part of it, they’re not huge artists. It’s not Ed Sheeran, say. I mean, Thinking Out Loud might be a bit weird at a funeral anyway… But seeing someone like Jacob get huge recognition at the Mercury Prize and the BRITs… People like someone that feels real where it’s not overly produced or polished, where it’s something raw and authentic and lyrically extremely moving. Dove Ellis is another example, I only found him six months ago and now it feels like he’s the next big artist to keep an eye on. And he’s so elusive! He refuses to do any interviews but that adds to the appeal.”
Do you have a message for the business about how it can help new acts?
“I mean, people should be paid fairly for the work that they produce and there’s an imbalance at the moment, but I don’t think that’s a new idea. With the way that people consume music, artists aren’t adequately supported financially. What does that change look like? Massive. As to whether or not it will happen? I don’t know. Once upon a time, I thought I’d quite like to write something and see what that sounds like, and then I’m looking at the costs and, oh my God… It’s miraculous that anyone’s making any music at all. But in terms of how you tackle that in the music industry, it’s just a big beast, isn’t it? I don’t know where you start. But indie record labels are doing their best to uphold and champion these artists and I think we’re trying at Radio 1. We’re really trying.”
Subscribers can read the full Sian Eleri interview with Lisa Wright here.
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